Stories, analysis, highlights, and everything Yankees from an up & coming sports journalist.

Mo vs. Mick: Why Mo is better

I will assume most of the readers of Yankee Yapping are familiar with the Wall Street Journal, a prestigious newspaper founded in 1889, based out of New York City. Now, unless you are a journalism major or have taken a newspaper history class, I will assume most readers are unaware of how the Wall Street Journal developed its own style of story.

A Wall Street Journal-style story always starts with a specific example; names and situations, usually focusing on one topic. The story then gradually delves into that topic with general information, and then at the end reverts back to the specific example used to start the story.

And most of the endings have what’s called a “circle kicker” or a twist; a turn of events.

It’s all very fantastic, genius even. Think of what’s about to happen here as a Wall Street Journal-style blog post. Chances are there will be some backlash, another journalistic term, meaning a strong or adverse reaction by a large number of people. Although some readers might very well agree and feel the same way I do about this next graf.

Mariano Rivera was better than Mickey Mantle.

(Ducks, hides, takes cover)

There. I said it. That’s your specific example; the topic. Now, general information might contradict that statement, or at least suggest otherwise.

Mantle, in 18 seasons with the Yankees, was a 20-time (allow me to reiterate, 20-time!) all-star, a three-time AL MVP, and a seven-time World Series champion. The “Commerce Comet” won the Triple Crown in 1956 (52 HR, 130 RBI, .353 BA), and was selected (first ballot) to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974. Mantle’s number 7 is lying proudly behind the center field wall in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium.

Rivera, in 19 seasons in pinstripes, was a 13-time all-star, an ALCS MVP (2003), a World Series MVP (1999), an All-Star game MVP (2013), and a five-time World Series champion. He saved more games than any other closer in baseball history (652), owns more saves than any other closer in the postseason (42), and his number 42 was also placed in Monument Park – even before his last game, making him the first Yankee to have his number retired while still a part of the active roster.

In general consideration, both of these Yankee legends’ numbers speak for themselves. It’s difficult to even compare their numbers, as Mantle was a hitter; a position player, while Rivera was a specialty pitcher. Many folks may even say the two are incomparable – or, there is simply no comparing them. It’s impossible to say who was better on the field.

On the field, yes. Maybe incomparable. But here’s where it gets specific again.

In 1973, Yankee Stadium was coming up on its 50-year anniversary. The president of the Yankees at the time, Robert Fishel, reached out to a number of former Yankee players before the House that Ruth Built’s anny, asking them to write down their “most outstanding” Yankee Stadium moment.

Fishel sent a letter to ”The Mick” and asked him to name his most outstanding moment at Yankee Stadium, and also asked him to describe it as best he could: where it took place and when. Mantle’s answer was childish and disturbing.

I had to censor some of Mantle’s answer, for fear of MLBlogs and the MLB community becoming offended, but using your knowledge, it’s not difficult to determine what Mantle wrote.

A lot of people undoubtedly laughed at the response. Some surely even commended it. “That’s our Mickey! Ha ha ha! Way to go!”

When I first read it, however, I didn’t find humor in the sophomoric response. I didn’t think of the way everyone most assuredly got a chuckle out of Mantle’s answer. Perhaps I just don’t think the way everyone else does, because I only thought of one person:

I thought of Mariano Rivera. I thought of what “The Sandman’s” response would have been to that letter. I thought of what moment he might have picked – and how classy the answer would have been. I thought of how Rivera would have thanked God for whatever the moment was.

Maybe Rivera would have selected celebrating the 1996 World Series victory on Yankee Stadium soil as his favorite moment. Mo’s most outstanding memory could have also been closing out Game 4 in 1999, riding out of the big ballpark in the Bronx on the shoulders of his teammates after being named MVP of the fall classic.

Collapsing with pure joy on the mound after Aaron Boone clubbed the Yanks into the World Series on that fateful October night in 2003 – perhaps that was Rivera’s special moment. Or maybe Sept. 22, 2013, “Mariano Rivera Day” would have been what he wrote back.

Readers are certainly entitled to their own opinions on this rather controversial topic, but the specific example is what it is. Rivera outclassed Mantle in every way over the course of his career, even if their stats are incomparable.

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